These are both terrific. The classic crime novels are hard to beat. I really loved the Sam Spade character. He's not a heel and he's not a boy scout. Like you point out, you're not sure what he's going to do next. And I love writing in that style. Switching POV is so powerful when you're doing third-person limited. I love it when we get the protagonist's point of view and then it switches to the villain and you can't be sure what the protagonist is doing or thinking. Fresh perspectives keep the narrative fresh throughout. Great post, Frank.
Your example scene from The Maltese Falcon is a good example of how Hammett showed the story, putting the reader into the scene, and I like that. The objective POV works as a fair way to withhold information from the reader and helps to make scenes play out like a movie.
I prefer Chandler for his use of language to evoke a mood and the Los Angeles settings, and he was a master of similes. Look to Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Judge and his Hangman for a plot where the protagonist lets rival gangs tear each other apart, well done.
I'd say that Hammett blazed trails that a lot of other writers followed, and we all benefitted.
These are both terrific. The classic crime novels are hard to beat. I really loved the Sam Spade character. He's not a heel and he's not a boy scout. Like you point out, you're not sure what he's going to do next. And I love writing in that style. Switching POV is so powerful when you're doing third-person limited. I love it when we get the protagonist's point of view and then it switches to the villain and you can't be sure what the protagonist is doing or thinking. Fresh perspectives keep the narrative fresh throughout. Great post, Frank.
Thanks Parker, really enjoyed Hammett
Your example scene from The Maltese Falcon is a good example of how Hammett showed the story, putting the reader into the scene, and I like that. The objective POV works as a fair way to withhold information from the reader and helps to make scenes play out like a movie.
I prefer Chandler for his use of language to evoke a mood and the Los Angeles settings, and he was a master of similes. Look to Friedrich Dürrenmatt's The Judge and his Hangman for a plot where the protagonist lets rival gangs tear each other apart, well done.
I'd say that Hammett blazed trails that a lot of other writers followed, and we all benefitted.
That first passage flows well because he uses actions and dialogue to mask the descriptive elements of the scene. Cool.